Fixture hanger



R. B. BENJAMIN FIXTURE HANGER Filed July 19, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet l v v[22 venzw"; I I

Dec. 1935. R. B. BENJAMIN I FIXTURE H-ANGER Filed Jul 19; 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2' w m m A *N I v n m n u \1 AP @g Q 3, a \N m NN WN aga/mm Patented Dec. 17, 1935 PATENT OFFICE FIXTURE HANGER Reuben B. Benjamin, Chicago, Ill., 'assignor to Benjamin Electric Mfg. Company, Des Plaines, Ill., a. corporation of Illinois Application July 19, 1933, Serial No. 681,101

13 Claims.

My invention relates to fixture hangers.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide an improved fixture hanger for use with fixtures mounted at a substantial elevation out of reach of the attendants, having provisions whereby the attendant can easily raise and lower the fixture for cleaning, inspection or replacement of parts.

A further object of my invention is to provide such a construction in which means are provided for insuring that the fixture makes a satisfactory mechanical and electrical connection with the fixture support.

A further object is to provide such a construction in which the attendant can guide the fixture in its raising and lowering movements to prevent it from being banged against the supporting post.

Another object is to provide such a construction in which the fixture is held in its operative position by strong spring tension.

A further object is to provide such a construction in which the fixture when in operative position can be made to direct the light in the desired direction, both with respect to lateral and vertical distribution.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description and claims.

In the drawings,-

Figure 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of a lighting fixture and hanger construction embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a detail view of the chain holder;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 4 is a bottom view of part of the construction of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the upper part of the lighting fixture unit;

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Fig.5;

Fig. '7 is a section on the line "l-l of Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a section on the line 8-8 of Fig. l

Fig. 9 is a section on the line 99 of Fig. 1; and.

Fig. 10 is a section on the line l0l0 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the construction shown comprises a tubular post I forming a conduit for the wiring, a housing and supporting member 2 mounted on the upper end of the post, a pulley 3 mounted in the housing and supporting member, a pull chain 4 running over said pulley, and a lighting fixture unit 5 secured to said-pull chain, to be raised and lowered thereby.

The lighting fixture unit comprisesa reflector portion 6 for directing a flood of light laterally,

a hood portion 1 extending upwardly from the reflector portion, a lamp socket 8 carried by said hood for supporting a lamp-bulb 9 so that its light source will lie within the reflector member 6, and 5 quick-detachable connector contacts ll] carried by the lamp socket for cooperation with corresponding quick-detachable contacts H mounted in the open bottom housing l2 which forms a part of the'housing and supporting member '2.

Aguiding and positioning cone i3 is secured to and above the hood portion 1 of the lighting fixture unit which fits snugly in a conical socket portion I4 of the housing and supporting member .2.

In order to guide and position the lighting fixture unit as it is being drawn upwardly, a loop 15 is secured to the rear side of the reflector portion o through which the pull chain 4 passes and a guide-lug I6 (Figs. 1, 5, 6 and '7) is provided on 20 the rear portion of the hood I for cooperation with flaring guide wings ll on the housing and supporting member (see Figs. "1 and 7) In order to change the elevation of the flood of light from the reflector, the housing and sup- 25 porting member -2 is pivotally mounted at l8 on the swiveled bracket l9 and may be held in desired adjusted position by means-of a clamping bolt 20 passing through a rearwardly-extending lug 21 on the housing and supporting member 2 and also extending through arcuate slots 23 in the-side wings 24 of the swiveled bracket I9. The swiveled bracket l9 may be held in any desired position ofswi-vel adjustment by means of set screws 25 passing through the-socket portion 28 of thebracketand engagingthe vertical post I.

The wires 21 for the lighting fixture unit are led from the tubular post I through flexible armored conduits 28 leading from the swiveled bracket '19 -to the open bottom housing l2, as 40 shown in Figs. 1, '3 and 8. The ends of these wires-are secured by means-of binding screws '29 to the binding plates 30 mounted on insulating blocks secured-in the upper=portion of the open bottom-housing. Theends of the quick-detachable connector contacts ll are-clamped underneaththese bindingplates 30.

The right.hand contact II is electrically connected to the shell contact 3! by means of the right hand contact-member l0 and the left hand connector contact II is electrically connected with the center contact 32 by means of the left hand contact member i I 0.

Inorderto-focussthe beam properly, the socket 8 is rockablyadjustable in the hood I, so that the lamp may be adjusted to various positions, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. l. The socket is rockable about a fulcrum point 33 (Figs. 1 and 6) by means of an adjusting screw 34 threaded through the hood portion 7 and engaging a rock plate 35 secured to the lamp socket.

A coil compression spring 36 serves to hold the lower end of the rock plate 35 against the point of the screw 34. When the fixture is drawn up into position by means of the chain 4, the lower end of the chain is slipped over the projecting fingers 37 of a retaining strap 38 secured adjacent the lower end of the post I (Fig. 2). This retaining strap is positioned on the post so that when the chain 4 is engaged therewith, the coil compression spring 39, located in the positioning cone i3, will be under substantial tension so as to hold the cone firmly in position in the socket portion is (Fig. 1).

In use, when the fixture is to be lowered for.

cleaning, inspection or replacement of parts, the chain 4 is released from the retaining strap 38 and the attendant pays out the chain to allow the fixture to descend by gravity to a position accessible to the attendant. The chain can be used to guide the fixture in its descending movement to keep it from being banged against the post. To return the fixture, the attendant pulls down on the chain to draw the cone l3 snugly up into the socket portion l4 and the chain 4 is then hooked over the retaining strap 38 to hold the fixture in its operative position.

Further modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art and it is desired, therefore, that the invention be limited only by the 'prior art and the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit having a lamp socket, connector contacts, a reflector having a hood surrounding said lamp socket, and a wedge member mounted above said hood, a stationary member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a tapering socket to receive said wedge member having a skirt portion overlapping and closely surrounding said hood for protecting the connection between the wedge and hood against the weather, and means for raising and lowering the unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the wedge member into and out of engagement withrespect to the tapering socket member and to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement.

2. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a lamp receptacle, connector contacts and a socket-engaging plug, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a socket for receiving said plug, means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to effect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said socket comprising a flexible pull member, said plug having a recess therein, and resilient means in said recess acting between the plug and flexible pull member for yieldingly holding the plug in the socket.

3. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a lamp receptacle, connector contacts and an upwardly-tapering socketengaging plug, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a downwardlyflaring socket for receiving said plug, means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contactsinto and out of engagement and to effect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said socket comprising a flexible pull member, said plug having a recess therein, and resilient means in said recess acting between the plug and flexible pull member for yieldingly holding the plug in the socket.

4. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a lamp receptacle, connector contacts and an upwardly tapering socketengaging plug, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a downwardly-flaring socket for snugly engaging said 'plug, and means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to effect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said socket and for resiliently holding said plug in snug engagement with said socket.

5. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a lamp receptacle, connector contacts and an upwardly tapering socketengaging plug insulated from said contacts, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a downwardly-flaring socket insulated from said contacts for snugly engaging said plug, and means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to efiect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said socket and for holding said plug in snug engagement with said socket, said inter-engaging connector contacts having a sliding engagement with respect to each other to permit the tapering plug to seat firmly Q in the flaring socket.

6. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a lamp receptacle, connector contacts and an upwardly tapering socket-engaging plug insulated from said contacts, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a downwardly-flaring socket insulated from said contacts for snugly engaging said plug, means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to efiect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said engaging plug insulated from said contacts, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a downwardly-flaring socket insulated from said contacts for snugly engaging said plug, means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to effect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said socket and for holding said plug in snug engagement with said socket, and means for adjustably mounting said socket for tilting movement about a horizontal axis to vary the angle of inclination of the axis of the flaring socket and tapering plug, said raising and lowering means comprising a pulley movable with said socket and mounted above said horizontal axis, and a flexible pull member extending over said pulley and secured to said plug.

8. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a reflector portion, a hood extending upwardly from the reflector portion, a lamp receptacle in the hood, connector contacts, and a socket engaging plug above the hood, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation including connector contacts for engagement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit, a downwardly-opening socket to receive the plug and a skirt portion overlapping and closely surrounding said hood, and means for raising and lowering the lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to move the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to efiect engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to the socket.

9. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a lamp receptacle, connector contacts and an upwardly tapering socketengaging plug insulated from said contacts, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for en agement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a downwardly-flaring socket insulated from said contacts for snugly engaging said plug, means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to effect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said socket and for holding said plug snug engagement with said socket, and means for adjustably mounting said socket for tilting movement about a horizontal axis to vary the angle of inclination of the axis of the flaring socket and tapering plug, said raising and lowering means comprising a flexible pull member and said adjustable mounting means comprising a pivoted bracket having provisions for housing said flexible pull member.

10. A lighting construction comprising a lighting fixture unit including a lamp receptacle, connector contacts and an upwardly tapering socketengaging plug insulated from said contacts, a stationary connector member mounted at a substantial elevation and having connector contacts for engagement with the contacts on the lighting fixture unit and a downwardly-flaring socket insulated from said contacts for snugly engaging said plug, means for raising and lowering said lighting fixture unit with respect to the stationary connector member to bring the connector contacts into and out of engagement and to effect the engagement and disengagement of the plug with respect to said socket and for holding said plug in' snug engagement with said socket, and means for adjustably mounting said socket for tilting movement about a horizontal axis to vary the angle of inclination of the axis of the flaring socket and tapering plug, said raising and lowering means comprising a pulley movable with said socket and mounted above said horizontal axis. and a flexible pull member extending over said 19 pulley and secured to said plug, said adjustable mounting means comprising a pivoted bracket having provisions for supporting and housing said pulley.

11. A lighting construction comprising a sup- 15 porting member, a bracket pivotally secured to said supporting member having a downwardly opening plug receiving socket, contacts mounted on said pivoted bracket, conductors leading to said contact, a pulley mounted on said brack- 20 et above said socket, a lighting fixture comprising a reflector portion, contacts mounted on the lighting fixture for engaging the contacts on the bracket, a hood portion above said reflector portion, a lamp receptacle mounted in said hood portion and a plug mounted above said hood portion, and a flexible member secured to said plug and extending over said pulley for drawing said plug into said socket for holding the fixture in position and for bringing the contacts on the fixture into engagement with the contacts on the pivoted bracket.

12. A lighting construction comprising a supporting member, a bracket pivotally secured to said supporting member having a downwardly opening plug receiving socket, contacts mounted on said pivoted bracket, conductors leading to said contacts, a pulley mounted on said bracket above said socket, a lighting fixture comprising a reflector portion, a hood portion above said reflector portion, contacts mounted on the lighting fixture for engaging the contacts on the bracket, a lamp receptacle mounted in said hood portion and a plug mounted above said hood portion, and a flexible member secured to said plug and extending over said pulley for drawing said plug into said socket for holding the fixture in position, and for bringing the contacts on the fixture into engagement with the contacts on the pivoted bracket, the pivotal axis of the bracket being adjacent the junction between the hood and reflector portion when the fixture is in connected position.

13. A lighting construction comprising an upright tubular post, a supporting member mounted on the upper end of the post, a bracket pivotally secured to said support to swing about a horizontal axis having a downwardly opening plug-receiving socket, contacts mounted on said pivoted bracket, conductors leading from said tubular post to said contacts, a pulley mounted on said bracket above said socket, a lighting fixture comprising a reflector portion for directing light laterally away from said post, contacts mounted on the lighting fixture for engaging the contacts on the bracket, a hood portion above said reflector portion, a lamp receptacle mounted in said hood portion, a plug mounted above said hood portion, and a flexible member secured to said plug and extending over said pulley for drawing said plug into said socket to hold the fixture in position for bringing the contacts on the fixture into engagement with the contacts on the bracket.

REUBEN B. BENJAMIN. 

